Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter

Family Cicadellidae — the leafhoppers — contains over 22,000 described species worldwide and is one of the most species-rich groups of true bugs (Hemiptera). All species are plant phloem-feeders. Homalodisca vitripennis is the glassy-winged sharpshooter, native to the southeastern US, that has become one of the most economically destructive leafhoppers in the world after invading California in 1989-1990. The species is the primary vector of Xylella fastidiosa, a bacterial pathogen that causes Pierce's disease in grapevines, citrus variegated chlorosis in oranges, and several similar diseases in almonds, oleander, and other crops. Pierce's disease has caused over $100 million per year in California viticulture losses since the 2000s. The glassy-winged sharpshooter feeds at high volume on plant xylem (not phloem like most leafhoppers) and excretes copious 'sharpshooter' droplets — earning the common name from the explosive way she shoots out excess water during feeding. Family Cicadellidae has been culturally famous since 2013 for the discovery (Burrows & Sutton, Science) that the hind legs of nymphal leafhoppers contain interlocking GEAR TEETH along the trochanteral processes — the only documented gear-tooth mechanism in animal anatomy. The gears mesh during jump launch to ensure both hind legs fire synchronously (within microseconds), producing acceleration above 200g and ballistic launch trajectories with no rotation. The gears are lost at the final moult to adult, suggesting they wear quickly and the adult does not need to make as many extreme jumps.